Behavioural effects of androgens in men

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Abstract

A series of studies are presented which attempt to answer specific
questions concerning the androgen-behaviour relationship in the adult
human male.
A critical review of the literature revealed that the
androgen-behaviour relationship in the human male has been poorly
researched. In particular, unsatisfactory experimental methodology and
inexact operational definitions of behaviour have been employed. In
the studies presented in this thesis an attempt was made to
specifically define dysfunctional states and to carefully monitor the
resultant behavioural effects of androgen administration.
In the hypogonadal man, a dose-dependent relationship was
demonstrated for specific aspects of sexual functioning, in particular
self-rated interest in sex and frequency of morning erections appeared
to vary with androgen replacement dose.
In the eugonadal man, intramuscular depot injections of
testosterone were shown to be the best method of overcoming the
homeostatic mechanisms and increasing circulating androgen levels in
the blood. High dosage testosterone administration acted to increase the
level of sexual interest of a group of men whose presenting complaint
was loss of libido. This treatment, however, did not result in an
increased frequency of sexual activity. High dosage testosterone
administration had no behavioural effect, compared with placebo, in a
group of eugonadal men presenting with erectile dysfunction.
Androgen administration appeared to have a stimulatory effect on
the nocturnal erections of a group of hypogonadal men, although androgen withdrawal resulted in differing rates of diminution of
nocturnal erectile response. In contrast, androgen administration had
no effect on the nocturnal erections of a group of eugonadal men
presenting with erectile dysfunction.
Androgen administration to hypogonadal and eugonadal men had a
general lack of effect on a series of psychometric test scores, which
measure various aspects of cognitive functioning and personality.
(Previous investigators had proposed that these test scores were
correlated with circulating androgen levels).
A case study is presented, reporting the lack of behavioural
effect of oral testosterone undecanoate administration in an
institutionalised hypogonadal man who had previously responded very
aggressively to testosterone injections.
The implications of these experimental findings are discussed in
relation to the results of previous studies.